Insider: Celtic and Rangers have hidden advantage after ‘absolute shock’ news
Scottish Premiership teams may already be beaten before the first whistle when playing Celtic and Rangers.
That is the view of medical expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in injury and data analysis.
As quoted by the Daily Record last week (19 October), Hibs manager Lee Johnson revealed he was bringing in a sports psychologist to help younger players not be “brainwashed” when they club face the Old Firm clubs.
Johnson admitted his side’s performance in their 6-1 defeat at Celtic Park earlier this month (15 October) was an “absolute shock”.
“If you wish to compete at an elite level with the best teams within your league then you need to have that elite mentality.
“You need to be of the understanding implicitly that you are going to win. You need to have a belief that you can go out there and perform and ultimately, you can go and get the victory.
“Any crack in that facade then you become found out and you are beaten before you even cross that white line.
“Historically, if those defeats are ongoing like Motherwell who haven’t beaten Rangers in the Premiership for almost 20 years, when you cross that line the expectation levels are you are going to get absolutely nothing. They can then focus on the games they can, in theory, win.
“It’s about changing that mindset because ultimately at the end of the day, they are human beings, not robots.
“As a starting point, you’ve got to try and outwork your opponent and maintain that intensity. That gives you a chance.
“But it starts with the head. The psychological aspect of the game is not just mindset, but handling the pressures of those big-game environments.
“For some of those players there will be an element of ‘Wow, we’re playing the big boys here’.”
In other news, Celtic and Rangers have been told to “avoid a real mess” amid a “dangerous” claim.